In October 1963 Macmillan suddenly developed a prostate problem and his resignation as prime minister swiftly followed. The two were not, however, inevitably linked, as Alistair Lexden pointed out in a letter published on September 21 in reply to comments by The Daily Telegraph’s medical correspondent.
SIR--James Le Fanu (Health, September 19) errs in saying that Harold Macmillan was “persuaded to retire” as prime minister in October 1963 as a result of his prostate trouble, a condition that was entirely benign.
Macmillan was under no pressure to resign. His doctors told him that he would make a quick and complete recovery after surgery. Nevertheless, he reversed his decision to stay on to the next election which he had made clear to the Palace on 7 October.
His surgeon, Alec Badenoch, recorded that Macmillan used his illness “as a vehicle for resignation in order to extricate himself from an increasingly difficult political position”, telling Badenoch: “it came as manna from heaven—an act of God”.
Lord Lexden
London SW1